


are you kidding me?

by yawnralphio



Series: Fictober20 [24]
Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Gen, Injury, fictober20
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:00:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27184187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yawnralphio/pseuds/yawnralphio
Summary: The 118 treat an accident on a construction site.
Series: Fictober20 [24]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1967260
Comments: 1
Kudos: 51





	are you kidding me?

"We need to come at this from two directions," Bobby said, turning away from the sight of the man dangling several stories above them. "Hen and Chim, I need you to haul ass up to that opening and get ready to treat him."

"Got it, Cap," Hen said, turning away from the small huddle they'd formed. She retrieved her kit and the spine board, handing the latter off to Chimney who stood waiting at the back of the ambulance. They set off for the main staircase as Bobby continued giving instructions.

"Buck, Eddie - I want you two to get the ladder up under him. Secure him so we can take the tension off that cable and get him out of there."

"Got it, Cap." Buck nodded sharply and turned to look up at the ladder coiled atop the fire truck. "You want the fun job or the boring one?" he asked, glancing sideways at Eddie.

Eddie patted his shoulder patiently. "Just get on the ladder, would you?"

Buck grinned and did as he was told and climbed up to the platform while Eddie went to the back to man the controls. Firefighters were required to use a safety harness any time the ladder was used. He shimmied into it and hooked himself onto the safety rail while Eddie prepped the hydraulics. Riding the ladder up was a slow process, but one of his favorite things about working the ladder truck. He gave Eddie the thumbs up and hunkered down as the ladder jolted into motion.

They'd been called to the site of a historic hotel that was being renovated prior to reopening. The construction crew were working on gutting the place of anything that was outdated or not up to code. That included taking out the old dumbwaiter system that ran from the basement kitchen all the way up.

From what they'd been told, one of the crewmembers had been holding onto the cable when the pins securing the cable were removed. The full weight of the assembly dropped, yanking him into the air before he could let go. His arm went into the pulley system and lodged there. It prevented the five story fall to his death, but also did plenty of damage to most of the arm.

"Hey," Buck called out, once the ladder was close enough that he didn't quite have to yell. To his credit, the guy didn't look nearly as scared as he probably should have been.

"Hey," he called back, holding out his hand with thumb and pinky extended. "How's it hanging?"

"You had my entire ride to think of something and that's the best you came up with?" Buck laughed, leaning to one side of the safety rails. He bent his head toward the radio and gave Eddie a few instructions to guide the platform.

"It was his idea," the man said, jerking his thumb behind him at where Chimney and Hen stood.

Buck snorted and shook his head. "Figures. I'm Buck," he said, reaching out to stop the man's gentle swaying.

"Maurice. Mo to my friends." He had shaggy brown hair that was plastered to his head in the shape of his missing helmet, and he reached out to grab Buck's shoulder as soon as they were within arm's reach.

"Hey Mo. I wish we'd met under better circumstances," Buck said sincerely. He glanced up at the arm and quickly decided he didn't need to look anymore. "Doing alright?"

"Oh, you know; just dreaming of what I'm going to do with all my time off."

"Oh yeah?" Buck bent to retrieve the second harness at his feet. The more he kept him talking, the less he'd freak out.

"Yeah. I figure physical therapy will take up a lot of my time."

Buck laughed despite himself. "Believe me, I've been there."

Mo licked his lips and forced a smiled. "What for?"

"Truck was blown up a while back," Buck said, continuing to work even as they talked. He secured the harness around their chatty patient and hooked him into the safety rail. "It got tipped on its side, with part of me underneath it."

"Ouch," Mo grimaced. "Looks like you recovered okay."

"Took a while, but yeah," he admitted. Buck leaned into the radio and directed Eddie to reposition the ladder under Mo's feet. He glanced past him at Hen and raised an eyebrow as if to ask,  _ How is this guy even talking? _

Hen lifted one shoulder and turned her palms up.

Buck shook his head in disbelief and spoke into the radio again. "Okay, Bobby. We're good." He readied himself to catch Mo in case he lost his footing, hooking his fingers into the belt of the harness with one hand and gripping the ladder with the other.

With the help of the construction crew and their machinery, Bobby slowly lifted the metal box of the elevator until the tension on the cable relaxed. Mo dropped onto the ladder next to Buck, his arm still held aloft. It looked like something out of a horror movie.

The ladder began to shift without Buck's prompting, taking them closer to the opening of the fifth floor. Eddie extended them past the edge by a couple feet to allow some wiggle room. As soon as it was safe to do so, Hen and Chimney transferred Mo to the concrete floor and laid him down.

Buck hopped off the ladder and unhooked them both from it. "You can take her in," he radioed to Eddie, and then it was his turn to wait.

The medics got to work instantly. Hen worked to bandage his arm while Chim took vitals and asked Mo all the questions about allergies and pre-existing conditions. Their routine was flawless after working together for so long, and Chimney had administered pain medication before Hen even finished cleaning and wrapping what she could. Even after so many months spent working alongside them, they were still a fascinating team to watch.

Hen sat back when she was done and looked up at Buck with a wry smile. "Shock is one hell of a thing, isn't it?"

"You can say that again."

"Let's get him down to the bus," Chimney piped in, handing off the bag of morphine. He stood and took hold of the spine board at Mo's feet, leaving Buck to grab the other end. They formed an awkward procession going down several flights of stairs, with Hen keeping pace beside them.

The back of the ambulance was already open, gurney extended. Eddie assisted them with the transfer from the board to the gurney. They closed and slapped the back doors in tandem once it was pulled inside. Hen set off for the hospital with their cargo, leaving the rest of them to make their way back to the house.

Bobby met them at the side of the truck, wiping dust from the machinery off his hands.

"What made them think one guy could hold that much weight?" Buck asked him, gesturing to the remnants of the dumbwaiter that now rested firmly on the ground.

"Apparently they all agreed it was only two hundred pounds." Bobby sounded less than impressed. He reached for the handle of the door, but was stopped by Buck's hand on his arm.

"Are you kidding me? Those things weigh like half a ton," he said, gaping at Bobby.

"Why do you know that?" Eddie asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Do I even have to answer that?" Buck shot back, earning Bobby's exasperated sigh.

"Either way, there's going to be one hell of an investigation once OSHA finds out about this. Now get in the truck," Bobby ordered, and climbed up into the captain's chair before either of them could get another word in.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [tumblr](https://yawnralphio.tumblr.com).
> 
> Reblog [here](https://yawnralphio.tumblr.com/post/632903767313055744/24-are-you-kidding-me-fox-911-description-of).


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